Posts written by Michael J. Mahony

When I sent the email to Marc David asking for an interview I never anticipated what would happen next.  First, it turns out that Marc is an incredibly nice guy who is extremely interested in helping out real people.  He is not an ego maniac who likes his butt kissed.  Next, after doing the interview, the level of accountability has been consistently increasing.  Marc posted the podcaste on his http://www.bodybuildingsecretslive.com site and the day he did that, the hits on my site were 228, the most in a single day ever.  Today he has upped the accountability level for me even more by posting the podcast at http://www.nobullbodybuilding.com/expertseries/callpage.html.  Check it out…he even posted a headshot of me.  Thanks, Marc, with your help, I am even more accountable now than I was before.  That's why I started this blog and you've helped me alot with this.  Between Adam posting our stuff on YouTube and then this podcast interview, I know I'm getting alot of people reading my stuff and looking for results.

I got in a double Max-OT cardio session today.  I did the first one and then did my FYA workout followed by a second Max-OT cardio session.  I felt the burn for hours afterwards.  It was an awesome feeling. 

Food today was PERFECT.  I cooked up a bunch of chicken breasts yesterday and chopped up a bunch of veggies to take with me to work.  Now, I've managed to hit my nutritional marks consistently for weeks now, but today was just extremely easy because of the advanced preparation.  It was another BFFM day for me and it felt good.  I will be lifting tomorrow and have a feeling I'm going to feel very strong.  The addition of carbs back into my diet feels good so far.  I've learned alot about eating the past 2 months, that's for sure.

This was an interesting day in some respects.  I was pretty focused on my work and getting the right things done.  I spent some time discussing long range plans and found that because of all the planning I do on my nutrition and exercise, the planning at work was even easier.  It is second nature for me now and that feels really good.

As far as accountability, this blog was started with that entire concept in mind.  I failed at it once (you can still see the old posts), but with the help of Adam Waters and the rest of the Shredder Council I've managed to keep it going for 95 straight days now.  I have five (5) more days left in this first mission and I'm going straight into Mission 2 with no break.  I will have a little surprise for Day 100 that is really nothing special, just something fun.

I am planning my next article and will post it here soon.  The only way I could think of to follow up my last podcast was to go with a video podcast, so that's what I will be doing this week. 

Accountability Log:

I have decided that this Sunday I will have Super Bowl Push Up Sunday where I will finally get in more than 45 push ups at one stretch.  I will achieve this short term goal.

Until tomorrow…GET BACK TO LIFTING!

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I woke up today and was very excited because I got to go back to the gym and I was able to GET BACK TO LIFTING!  It felt great.  What was strange was the workout scheme.  I was doing 6 sets of 4 reps (that was the goal).  It was tough to figure out the right weights.  I also had to be careful because there was nobody around to spot me.  I had a good workout. Here is the log.

Workout Log – Hypertrophy III – Workout A:

These are supersets with 60 seconds rest.  The blue line breaks up the two superset combinations.

One of the reasons I've stuck with the New Rules of Lifting is that it is continually changing the volume and intensity of the workouts.  For instance, there are days in here where I will do this exact workout, but with less sets, more reps and less rest.  There are other days where I do this workout with an additional superset combination, less sets and more reps with less rest.  The continual variations keep your muscles guessing and it is why I continue to progress–I avoid that adaptation issue.

Today was my first day back on the Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle nutrition program.  It was hard to eat the calories that I needed to hit because I've been so low for so long (36 days).  What was really weird was the oatmeal.  With Metabolic Surge I've been limiting my oatmeal to about 15 grams prior to my workout (mixed into my workout shake).  Today I was able to have oatmeal with my first three meals and it felt pretty weird.    I had the hardest time choking down all that food.  I will get used to it over time, but it was definitely a difficult thing to do today.  One thing I learned from Metabolic Surge is the importance of the fibrous carb.  I used that for the final 3 meals of the day today.

I managed to crank out 43 push ups today.  You can see it here Push up challenge: Week 5 test video.  At first I was a little disappointed that I didn't hit 45, but I realized that progress comes in small pieces and I've made progress each and every week since this challenge began, so who am I to complain?

I've been working on the Max-OT lifting program today.  I spent some time looking over how to group the exercises and I've reviewed a spreadsheet Mike Groom sent over to me (thanks, Mike).  It was an interesting review and I plan to utilize this program in the future.  I've got the person I'm training lifting heavy, with varying sets of 4-6 reps.  At first it was hard, but they got the hang of it and now they even push to get past 6 when possible.  It is fun to watch the progress.

Accountability Log:

I am going to carefully monitor my progress this week as I am concerned about the increased calories.  I will be cycling the carbs and the calories on a 3 day low, 1 day high cycle.  3 of those cycles and I get a cheat meal.  I'm going to be publishing an article in the next few days regarding what I've learned about carb cycling.

Until tomorrow…do like me…GET BACK TO LIFTING!

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The stats are in for the week.  Here they are:

My weight and body fat percentage stayed the same this week.  I'm really not surprised.  The weight lifting I do really helps me burn fat big time.  Without that, I have a little more trouble.  The interesting thing to me, and this is telling, my cardio strategy needs to change up more often.  It is something Marc David mentioned in Podcast: The No Bull Bodybuilding Interview with Marc David.  Not only do we need to change up our weight lifting plan, we need to change up our cardio plan as well.  I have to examine this because I should have lost some fat.  What's odd is that my pictures definitely show progress.

My learning from these results:  I need to reexamine my cardio and change it up more often.

Accountability Plan for This Week:

Sunday, 1/27/2008:
    Nutrition:  
        BFFM, 40/40/20 (2550 calories)
        18 glasses of water
    Workout:  
        Weight training
        30 minutes steady state cardio on bike
        FYA workout
        Push up challenge week #5 test

Monday, 1/28/2008:
    Nutrition:
        BFFM, 40/40/20 (2550 calories)
        18 glasses of water
    Workout:  
        Max-OT Cardio Session for 16 minutes on treadmill
        FYA workout
        Push up challenge workout

Tuesday, 1/29/2008:
    Nutrition:
        BFFM, 40/40/20 (2550 calories)
        18 glasses of water
    Workout:
        Weight training
        FYA workout
        45 minutes steady state cardio on elliptical

Wednesday, 1/30/2008:
    Nutrition:
        BFFM, 50/30/20 (3050 calories)
        18 glasses of water
    Workout:
        Max-OT Cardio Session for 16 minutes on bike
        FYA workout
        Push up challenge workout

Thursday, 1/31/2008:
    Nutrition:
        BFFM, 40/40/20 (2550 calories)
        18 glasses of water
    Workout:
        Weight Training
        FYA workout
        HIIT Cardio Sesssion for 20 minutes on elliptical

Friday, 1/25/2008:
    Nutrition:
        BFFM, 40/40/20 (2550 calories)
        18 glasses of water
    Workout:
        Max-OT Cardio Session for 16 minutes on treadmill
        FYA workout
        Push up challenge workout

Saturday, 1/26/2008:
    Nutrition:
        BFFM, 40/40/20 (2550 calories)
        18 glasses of water
    Workout:
        HIIT Cardio Session for 20 minutes on treadmill
        FYA workout

Monday through Friday my nutrition plan starts at 4:30 a.m. while it starts at 6 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday.  I am currently on a week away from weightlifting.  My focus is on mixing up the cardio this week.  I will be alternating the style of cardio and they cardio equipment that I use.  With the plan I have for this week I will be doing the bike 2 times, the elliptical 2 times and the treadmill 3 times.  I will also be doing HIIT 2 times, Max-OT 3 times and Steady State 2 times.  I'd say that's a pretty good try at variety.

My pics and the rest of my day will be coming later. 

Until then…GET BACK TO LIFTING!

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I did my test today and put together a cool little video to show the progress (if there was any).  I am trying to use this stuff to practice for the Web 2.0 world of networking and video blogging.  I'm planning a video blog for next week with the topic yet to be decided.  I also posted this video as a response to Adam's Shredder Sunday video.

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I spent some time today going through my thoughts and figuring out some things about those thoughts.  I got myself a little more organized.  I am currently working on my eBook and planning my website that will both support the eBook and provide an information source for aspiring bodybuilders and people who want to get into lifting.  The information I have in my head is being checked against current research so that it will be totally accurate when provided on the new site.

In doing this type of reflection I determined the path that I want to take for my future growth in the fitness field.  Some things that Marc said after the podcast interview really got me thinking.  I prefer not to divulge exactly what we discussed, but I will say that Marc and I are in agreement.  My plan is to offer simple, safe and accurate information and to let that information speak for itself.  If anyone wants to get involved, there is a sign up on the sidebar of this blog that will also automatically send you a special report called The Stubborn Fat Solution by David Grisaffi, author of Flatten Your Abs.  I am using David's Flatten Your Abs system and find it to be just the thing for my core. 

The work on my eBook continues each week.  It is taking a bit longer than I originally anticipated because I want to be accurate with the information I am presenting.  As a special bonus, anyone who starts or continues an accountability blog will receive the eBook for a 50% discount during the first week of its release.  To be eligible, you need to meet the following requirements:

1. Maintain an accountability blog
2. Post pictures on that blog at least weekly (daily is preferred)
3. Post an entry to your accountability blog daily.
4. Sign up for the free report The Stubborn Fat Solution by David Grisaffi by using the form on the sidebar under the “Trying to get six pack abs?” spot.

My reflection time brought me to realize that the changes I've made for my own health are now changes that will dictate my future life.  In this Web 2.0 world, I've learned that it is important to be an example.  People today find many different ways to connect.  It is also very easy to weed out a fake.   Thus, it is extremely important to walk the walk and talk the talk.  If you don't practice what you preach it will get around fast.

Today was a steady state cardio session of 45 minutes for me.  I enjoyed the time because it is where I did alot of my reflecting on life.   I did my FYA workout immediately after the cardio session.  I then got in 2 chin ups (unassisted) for the chin up challenge.

I spent the rest of the day reading The Attention Age Doctrine: Volume 2 and writing out plans for the future.  Nothing too exciting for the very moment, but the plans I have are big ones.  Definitely stay tuned over the next year as these plans get put into action and produce massive action and results.

On the nutrition side, I am just about to complete the third round of Metabolic Surge and I plan to set it aside in favor of Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle complete with carb-cycling.  I will follow a plan where my food system is set up as follows:

3 days of low carb eating
1 refeed day with higher carbs and higher calories

Thus, I will be on a 4 day cycle that I will just repeat.  Every 12 days (3 cycles) I will have a cheat meal where I will eat anything I want guilt free.  I will take what I learned from Metabolic Surge and apply it to what I've learned with Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle and together they should make a powerful nutritional force.  I will be posting next week's plan tomorrow after posting my stats.

Accountability Log:

I am planning to finish this mission strong.  I will be shredding extra hard this week.  Tomorrow I begin a new hypertrophy workout and I am excited.  I've been away from lifting for 8 straight days!

Until tomorrow…GET BACK TO LIFTING!

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